Locking and release mechanism for pressure vessel closures



March 13, 1951 J. E. OYS ET AL LOCKING AND RELEASE MECHANISM FOR PRESSURE VESSEL CLOSURES Filed May 143, 1948 nul F llllll'm-IlmlH-llmll Patented Mar. 1.3,

UNITED STATES PATENT QFFIC FOR John E. Oys and August H. Pinke, Hastings, Minn., assignors to Lowell Specialtyompany; Lowell, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application May ie, 194s, serial No. 26,836"

claims. (C1. 22o-'44) The invention relates to locking and release mechanisms for the closures of pressure-type vessels such, for example, as pressure-type tanks for sprayers, which, together with their contents may be placed under a substantial internal pres` sure. More particularly the invention is concerned with the provision of simple but effective and certain means whereby a closure or cover for an access or other opening of substantial area in a pressure vessel may be firmly secured in both air and liquid tight engagement with the vessel over such opening and yet may be readily released, and involves an arrangement whereby dissipation of the internal pressure of the tank may be effected prior to opening the closure.

A pressure vessel, such' as a` portable spray tank for spraying fungicides, insecticides and other liquid or' vapor sprays, ordinarily is' equipped with a fill or access opening of substantial area. Usually such an opening is located in the top or top portion of the' tank', and generally inf connection with or adjacent to a power or manually operated air pump by which pressure of a substantial degree is built up within the tank to effect displacement of the liquid' contents.

Quite often it is preferable to have the access or fill opening in the tank closed by a `cover or closure which will seat from within the' tank against the margin of the tankwall about the" opening so that the pressures developed within the tank may hold or tend to hold the closure" firmly in place, and so that such pressures tend to make and to increase the effectiveness of a: seal between the closure and the tan-k wall form'- ing the margin about such opening. Arrangev` ments of this character not only enect a tight seal to prevent the escape of the compressed' air or other gas within the tank, but' also mini` mize the chance of leakage of the spray material:

and the possibility of injury to the person or the clothing of the user.

However, when occasion demandsv that theY pressure tank be opened when there is still sub--` stantial pressure within it, it becomes'n'ecessary to reduce the pressure in the tank' before the"I ble, of course, to release thepressurefrcmwit the? tank vby opening' the spray nozzle" .cont 4c1 valve, but that might be undesirable that -i-t` mightrequire wastage -of spray-material.- Con-n 2 sequently, it is preferable t'o provide an air bleed valve in an upper portion of the tank for exh'auston of the air or gas under pressure in the tank.

The employment of an air bleed or release valve in a spray tank of the character mentioned presents certain problems including that of lo. cation for accessibility and that of safety, ease and speed of operation. Problems of production or manufacturing as distinguished from problems of utility, safety, etc. are also present and must be considered in this connection. Accordingly, one of the principal' and important objects of the invention is to provide a closure locking and release mechanism for pressure tanks of the character mentioned which will be of such construction and arrangement asA will not only lend itself to ease and economy rof manufacture, but also to ease, certainty and effectiveness in use.

A more specific but important object is to provide an arrangement whereby a' single handle or manually operable member may serve not only as a convenient'means by which to manipulate or carry the sprayer as a whole, but also as a part of the closure locking and release mechanism and as a means whereby thel tank pressure re.'- lease valve vmay be opened and held i-n open position until the pressures 'internal .of and vexternal to the tank have been' equalized. .In this connection it may be mentioned that the preferred arrangementv includes means for releasably securing the handle .or operating member in its position where they pressure release valve is held open' and until the pressure has been reduced.v

Many other objects as Well as the several advantages and uses 0f the invention will or should become apparent and understood after reading the following descriptonin which:

Fig. 1 is a topple/n View of a spray tank `or the like embodying a'` presently preferred form of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a section taken along the section line 2-' .2- 0f Fig, 1, the view beingvv confined .to the upper portion 0f the tanksince the .lower portion of the 'tankisnot 'particularly concerne-d withV the invention, and

Fig'. 3 is a section taken'along" the section line 3.-3 of Fig. 1-,and'at'right angles-to .thesection` or Votherwise' smily -fsecuredenu sealed' te cylindrical W351iV 4". The top portion ti may b constructed as a heavy sheet metal stamping or the like and is provided with three apertures or openings, a small circular opening 6 for the passage of a spray outlet tube l which is sealed to the tank wall as by welding or soldering as at 8, a circular opening 9 for the reception of a hand air pump or the like which may be similar to that disclosed in Winks et al. application Serial No. 599,258 filed June 13, 1945, now Patent No. 2,529,645, and a relatively large oval-shaped access or iill opening Il. About the access opening I I the top of the tank has a marginal flange I 2 struck upwardly from the general plane of the top surface, thereby to provide a sealing seat extending entirely about the perimeter or margin defining the opening I l.

A closure or cover I3 has a dome portion I4 and an outwardly extending perimetrical flange I5,

the outer marginal edge of which is turned upwardly as indicated at I6 entirely about the closure. The arrangement of the outwardly extending ilange I5, together with the upstanding edge portion I5 thereof, provides a perimetrically extending channel for the reception of a gasket I1 of rubber or other suitable material adapted to seat against the internal surface of the marginal iiange I2 thereby to seal the opening. As will be observed, the closure seats with and opens against the internal pressure of the tank but, being oval or elliptical in shape, may be tipped and removed through the fill or access opening if so desired.

A handle generally designated I8 has a central boss IS pivotally mounted upon a stud screw 2I secured in a cap nut 22, in turn secured and sealed to the dome I4 by a circumferentially extending weld or solder 23. Preferably the axis of the stud 2l is located at the intersection of the short and long diameters of the closure i3 and Vis substantially normal to the general plane of the top surface of the closure.

The handle I8 is of generally D-shape and includes a handle grip portion 2li and projections 25 extending in opposite directions from the bottom portion thereof. Secured as by welding or otherwise to the top or outer surface of the flange I2 at substantially diametrically opposed positions across the narrow width of the access opening is a pair of cam members or cam risers 25, each including a beveled riser portion 2T, a

flat or dwell portion 28 (in Fig. 1 the dwell portions lie beneath the projections 25 of the handle in .the position shown), and an upwardly projecting stop portion 29 to limit the movement of the projections 25 in one direction. Normally, and when the handle i8 is turned in a counterclockwise direction viewing Fig. 1 to a position where the cam engaging projections 25 are not in engagement with the cams, the level of the bot tom surfaces of the projections 25 will be slightly below the level of the flat dwell portions 28, i. e. closer to the level of the top surface of flange I2, than are the flat dwell portions 28 of the cams or risers 26. Thus, when the handle is turned in a clockwise direction viewing Fig. l, the surfaces 20 will rst engage the upwardly inclined or beveled surfaces 21 of the cams 26 and be urged upwardly until the projections ride on to the dwell portions 28 and are stopped by the upwardly projecting stops 23. The reaction between the projections of the handle and the cams 2E results in forcing the handle upwardly,

thereby pulling the closure I3 upwardly of the,

4 flange I2 entirely about the access opening. This mechanism effects a very simple and easily manufactured and operated closure fastening means. The dome I4 of the closure I3 is equipped with a pressure relief valve which may comprise a tubular cage 3| welded or otherwise secured and sealed in a suitable aperture in the closure dome and an air escape passage 32 surrounded at its interior end by a valve seat, a valve 33 having a suitable gasket 34 adapted to seat against the valve seat, a valve stem 35 attached to the valve and projecting through the air escape passage to the exterior of the dome, a spring 35 normally urging the valve against its seat and a cotter key 31 or another abutment means for the spring 35. Normally the valve is held against its seat by the spring 36 and by the pressure Within the tank when the tank is under pressure. The upper or outer end of the Valve stem 35 projects into the path of rotation o1' swinging movement o1" the handle and is arranged to be engaged by an under surface of the handle and depressed to open the valve when the handle is swung to a position substantially ninety degrees from that indicated in Fig. 1. In order to facilitate interengagement of the handle with the valve stem to effect opening of the valve, the handle is beveled as indicated at 38 at that edge which would first engage the valve stem, and the top of the valve stem itself is rounded off. In order to facilitate manufacturing and assembly operations the bottom portion of the handle is provided with a bevel 38 at each end so that it becomes immaterial which end is to engage the valve stem.

While the pressure release valve could be located in the top 5 of the tank it is preferred that it be located in the closure itself, and that with respect to such closure it be located on the long diameter of the closure or approximately ninety degrees (90) from either of the cams 26, but within the radial reach of that portion of the handle which it is to engage. This preferred arrangement is shown in Fig. l. In order to in sure the positive displacement of the valve 33 from .Y its seat and to hold the valve open until such time as it is desired to permit the valve to resume its seat, and also for the purpose of preventing the handle from being cocked on its pivot and thereby failing to depress the stem 35 and the valve, the closure dome I4 is provided with a struck-up projection or raised portion 35 extending transversely of the long axis of the closure and at a position radially outward from the axis of the stud 2| corresponding to the radial distance of the stem 35 from the axis of the stud, so that when one of the beveled surfaces 38 is engaging and starting to depress the stem 35 the other beveled surface 38 is engaging and riding up on the rounded or sloping end 4i of the projection 39. The opposite end of the projection 39 is provided with an upwardly projecting boss 42 which serves to limit the movement of the handle beyond that position where the handle is fully depressing the valve 33. Therefore, when the handle is moved in a counter-clockwise position from its locked position shown in Fig. 1 to a position at ninety degrees (90) thereto, one end of the handle will be depressing the valve while the other end rests upon and is held by proiection 39. The handle will remain in this position until it is positively rotated in a clockwise direction with respect to the closure.

It is, of course, desirable that the closure, with the attached handle, be prevented from dropping down into an inaccessible position within the teased tank when the closure is unlocked and pressure in the tank has been released. This may be easily accomplished by attaching one end of a chain 43 to the cotter key 31 vand its other. end to an internal stay or brace member 44 weldedlor otherwise secured across a portion of the top on the inside thereof. This' brace and the air pressure hand vpump are more fully disclosed in the aforesaid co-pending application.

It is believed that the operation as well as the construction of the locking and release mechanism will be fully understood from the foregoing description. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate the advantages of the invention as well as the fact that many variations and changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of the parts. Accordingly, we desire to be limited only by the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A closure locking and release mechanism for a pressure vessel of the character described hav- Iing an access opening and a closure for such access opening arranged to close with the pressure and to open against the pressure in the vessel comprising, a handle member pivotally mounted on the exterior side of said closure on an axis substantially normal to the general plane of said exterior side, cooperative camming means carried by said handle and by said vessel at substantially opposite sides of said closure and opening whereby rotation of said handle in one direction will interengage said camming means to draw said closure toward and against said vessel around the margins thereof dening said opening and whereby rotation in the opposite direction will release said camming means from interengagement, an inwardly opening valve mounted in said closure and having a stem projecting above the exterior side of the closure into the path of rotation of a part of said handle, said handle part being adapted to engage said stem and open said valve when said camming means are disengaged.

2. A closure locking and release mechanism for a pressure vessel of the character described having an access opening and a closure for such access opening arranged to close with the pressure and to open against the pressure in the vessel comprising, a handle member pivotally mounted on the exterior side of said closure on an axis substantially normal to the general plane of said exterior side, cooperative camming means carried by said handle and by said vessel at substantially opposite Sides of said closure and opening whereby rotation of said handle in one direction will interengage said camming means to draw said closure toward and against said vessel around the margins thereof dening said opening and whereby rotation in the opposite direction will release said camming means from interengagement, an inwardly opening valve mounted adjacent to said handle and having a stem projecting into the path of rotation of a part of said handle, said handle part being adapted to engage said stem and open said valve when said camming means are disengaged.

A. closure locking and release mehallim for a pressure vessel .of the character desribed having an access opening and a lsure for such access opening arranged to close with the pressure and to open against the pressure in the vessel comprising, a handle member pivotally mounted on the exterior side of said closure Qn an axis substantially normal to the general plane of said exterior side, cooperative camming means -carriedfby said handley and by said vessel at a plurality of spaced places about said closure and opening whereby rotation of said handle in one directionl will interengage said camming means to-"dra'w said'closure and vessel relatively together around the margins of the vessel delining said opening andr whereby rotation in the vopposite direction will release said camming means from interengagement,: an inwardly opening valve mounted adjacent to said handle and having a stem projecting into the path of rotation of a part of said handle, said handle part being adapted to engage said stem and open said valve when said camming means are disengaged.

4. A closure locking and release mechanism for a pressure vessel of the character described having an access opening and a closure for said opening arranged to close with the pressure and to open against the pressure in the Vessel comprising, a handle member mounted upon said closure for swinging movements about an axis substantially normal to the general plane of the external surface of said closure, a cam riser on the exterior of said vessel at each of substantially opposite sides of said opening, a cam riser on the exterior surface of said closure at a position disposed between said cam risers on said vessel and in the path of swinging movements of said handle, cam riser engaging means carried by said handle for cooperative and substantially simultaneous engagement with each of said cam risers on said vessel upon swinging movement of said handle in one direction whereby to secure said `closure over said access opening, swinging movement of said handle to a predetermined position in the opposite direction serving to disengage said cam riser engaging means from said cam risers on said vessel and to eiect interengagement of a portion of said handle and said cam riser on said closure, pressure relief valve means associated with said vessel and opening against the pressure therein, and a valve operating stem associated with said valve and located in the path of swinging movement of said handle member in a position to be intercepted and operated thereby substantially when the said handle portion and cam riser on the closure are inter-ene gaged thereby to open said valve. Y d

5, A closure locking and release mechanism for a pressure vessel of thecharacter described having an access opening and a closure for said opening arranged to yclose with the pressure and to open against the pressure in the vessel comprising, a handle member mounted upon said closure for swinging movements about an axis substantially ngrmal to the general plane of the external surface of said closure, a cam riser gn the exterior of said vessel at each of Substantially opposite sides of Said opening, cam riser engaging means Carried by Said handle for cooperative and substantially simultaneous engagement with each of said cam risers upon swinging movement of said handle in one directionwhereby to secure said closure over said access opening, swinging mgvement o f said handle in the opposite direction serving to Vvdisengage saisi @am riser engaging means from .Said cam risers, means for releasably securing said handle in predetermined position with respect to said closure when said riser engaging means is disengaged from said risers, pressure relief valve means associated with said Vessel and open-V ing against the pressure therein for a release of the pressure, and means operated by said handle 8 UNITED STATES PATENTS Numberl N e upon its movement to the last said posltlon for 1,903,167 Conni? Marjgae 1933 effecting the opening of said Valve. Y 2 026,799 Ragonnet Jan '7' 1936 Jormno s. s 88 AUGUST H. PINKE. 2,1 ,735 Grundstrom Jan. 30, 1940 FOREIGN PATENTS REFERENCES CITED Number Country Date France June 18, 1934 The following references are of record in the m '770,034

le of this patent: 

